March 2, 2018

Researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have developed a breakthrough electronically controlled artificial eye. The thin, flat, adaptive silicon nanostructure (“metalens”) can simultaneously control focus, astigmatism, and image shift (three of the major contributors to blurry images) in real time, which the human eye (and eyeglasses) cannot do.

“We will be able to watch a neural computation happen ... a step toward understanding what a thought or a feeling actually is.” --- Prof. Edward Boyden

February 28, 2018

Researchers at MIT have developed a new approach to measure electrical activity deep in the brain: using light — an easier, faster, and more informative method than inserting electrodes.

They’ve developed a new light-sensitive protein that can be embedded into neuron membranes, where it emits a fluorescent signal that indicates how much voltage a particular cell is experiencing. This could allow scientists to study how neurons behave, millisecond… read more

February 27, 2018

A new technique developed by University of Toronto Scarborough neuroscientists has, for the first time, used EEG detection of brain activity in reconstructing images of what people perceive.

The new technique “could provide a means of communication for people who are unable to verbally communicate,” said Dan Nemrodov, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in Assistant Professor Adrian Nestor’s lab at U of T Scarborough. “It could also have… read more

February 23, 2018

Deep-learning researchers have found that certain neurons in the brain have shape and electrical properties that appear to be well-suited for “deep learning” — the kind of machine-intelligence used in beating humans at Go and Chess.

February 21, 2018

Throat-motion sensor monitors stroke effects more effectively

A radical new type of stretchable, wearable sensor that measures vocal-cord movements could be a “game changer” for stroke rehabilitation, according to Northwestern University scientists. The sensors can also measure swallowing ability (which may be affected by stroke), heart function, muscle activity, and sleep quality. Developed in the lab of engineering professor John A.

February 19, 2018

Researchers from the Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute have completely reversed the formation of amyloid plaques in the brains of mice with Alzheimer’s disease by gradually depleting an enzyme called BACE1. The procedure also improved the animals’ cognitive function.

February 16, 2018

Robots are great at following programmed steps. But asking a robot to “move the green bottle from the cooler to the cupboard” would require it to have abstract representations of these things and actions, plus knowledge of its surroundings.

(“Hmm, which of those millions of pixels is a ‘cooler,’ whatever than means? How do I get inside it and also the ‘cupboard’? …”)

How to generate electricity from your body, bioprint a brain, and “resleeve your stack.”

February 14, 2018

Bioprinting a brain

A new bioprinting technique combines cryogenics (freezing) and 3D printing to create geometrical structures that are as soft (and complex) as the most delicate body tissues — mimicking the mechanical properties of organs such as the brain and lungs.

The idea: “Seed” porous scaffolds that can act as a template for tissue regeneration (from neuronal cells, for example), where damaged tissues are encouraged… read more

Less-invasive way to stimulate the brain with light may lead to new treatments for neurological disorders

February 12, 2018

An international team of researchers has developed a way to shine light at new depths in the brain. It may lead to development of new, non-invasive clinical treatments for neurological disorders and new research tools.

The new method extends the depth that optogenetics — a method for stimulating neurons with light — can reach. With optogenetics, blue-green light is used to turn on “light-gated ion channels” in neurons to stimulate… read more

February 9, 2018

An international team has developed an AI algorithm with social skills that has outperformed humans in the ability to cooperate with people and machines in playing a variety of two-player games.

The researchers, led by Iyad Rahwan, PhD, an MIT Associate Professor of Media Arts and Sciences, tested humans and the algorithm, called S# (“S sharp”), in three types of interactions: machine-machine, human-machine, and human-human. In most instances, machines programmed with… read more

February 7, 2018

The NIST switch, described in an open-access paper in Science Advances, provides a missing link for neuromorphic (brain-like) computers, according to the researchers. Such “non-von Neumann architecture” future computers could significantly speed up analysis and decision-making… read more

February 5, 2018

Injecting minute amounts of two immune-stimulating agents directly into solid tumors in mice was able to eliminate all traces of cancer in the animals — including distant, untreated metastases (spreading cancer locations), according to a study by Stanford University School of Medicine researchers.

The researchers believe this new “in situ vaccination” method could serve as a rapid and relatively inexpensive cancer therapy — one that is unlikely… read more

February 2, 2018

In an open-access paper published in Nature Communications, Ritesh Agarwal, a professor the University of Pennsylvania School of Engineering and Applied Science, and his colleagues say that they have made significant progress in photonic (optical) computing by creating a prototype of a working optical transistor with properties similar to those of a conventional electronic transistor.*

January 31, 2018

Inspired by the iconic Stars Wars scene with Princess Leia in distress, Brigham Young University engineers and physicists have created the “Princess Leia project” — a new technology for creating 3D “volumetric images” that float in the air and that you can walk all around and see from almost any angle.*

“Our group has a mission to take the 3D displays of science fiction and make them real,” said electrical… read more

... without interfering with the normal functions of the rest of the brain

January 28, 2018

MIT researchers have developed a miniaturized system that can deliver tiny quantities of medicine to targeted brain regions as small as 1 cubic millimeter, with precise control over how much drug is given. The goal is to treat diseases that affect specific brain circuits without interfering with the normal functions of the rest of the brain.*

“We believe this tiny microfabricated device could have tremendous impact in understanding brain… read more